Starting-box.



UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEicE.

ROBERT A. ILG, oF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

STARTING-BOX.

Specication of Letters Patent. i Patented Oct. 29, 1918.

Application filed July v22, 1916. Serial N o. 110,659.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatl I, ROBERT A. ILG, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and StateV of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful 1m rovements in Starting-Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relatesV lin general tothe starting box for starting and controlling electric motors and has more particular reference to the relation between the starting arm and the release member andto the man# ner of manipulating ,these elements.

In starting boxes employed prior to my present inventionthe starting arm has been equipped with a handle by means of which Y the arm is moved in starting the motor across a series of contact terminals to successively cut in or cutout a series of resistance units, and the release member is arranged to be moved by the starting arm into engagement with the releasemagnet only when the starting arm has reached the extreme limit ofV its starting movement so that the motor is then traveling at maximum speed. Should it be desirable in starting boxes ofthis character to slow down' the motor the starting arm `must then be' moved backwardly across the contact terminals until the required resistance is cut into the circuit of the motor to give the desired speed. Irrespective of what motor speed may be desired it is necessary, in order to bring the releasefarm into engagement with the release magnet, to swing ythe starting arminto full speed position thereby producing a motor speed which may be greater than is necessary or desirable. The abovediscussion refers particularly to series motors. y l

One of the primary objects of my present invention is to so construct and arrange the starting arm and release member that the operator, instead of'moving the release mem-y ber into engagement with its magnet by means of the starting arm, moves the release member directly into engagement with its magnet Withoutftouching lthe starting arm,

a connection being provided which, when the release member approaches the magnet,

vvautomatically moves the starting arm from inoperative position into circuit-closing contact with. the rst contact terminal of the starting resistance. kThe starting arm may thereafter be swung independently of the.

release member across the startingresistance contacts until the desired motor speed has been attained so that the motor is gradually brought up to the desired speed ywithout speeding 1t up to its maximum and then subsequently retarding it to the desired speed.

.Another object of my invention is-to provide a guard for the handle of the starting arm which will prevent the operator from moving the startingv arm until the release member has rst been moved into engagement with its magnet.

Other objects Vand many of the inherent advantages of my invention'will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following de- Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view en the line 4 4 of Fig. 4.

On the drawings reference character 5 indicates generally a starting box consisting of a frame in which the starting resistance coils (notshown) are mounted in the usual manner, which frame is provided with the usual top plate 6 made of insulating material.V

Upon the face of this plate is mounted a series of resistance contact terminals 7 *connected with the Vresistance coils beneath the plate in the usual manner, the resistance be# ing shown diagrammatically, as indicated by reference character 8, and at the maximum speed end of the series of contact terminals 'I there is mounted the usual release magnet 9, preferably connected, as shown in the present instance, in series with the starting resistance. c

VUpon an upright pivot pin 11 carried by a suitable base 12 there are pivotally mounted the starting arm 13 and 4the release member 14, the release member being attached to a yoke 15 which pivotally engages the pin 11. A coil spring 16 having one end 17 anchored in a socket in the base 12 and its other end engaged with the yoke 15 normally swings the release member in a counterclockwise direction, viewing Fig. 1, against the starting arm 13 and holds this arm through the intermediary of the release member against the view of a starting boxVv stop 19 in which position the contact portion 21 of the starting arm is engaged with a blank contact member 22 so that the current is shut off.

The release member 14, as will be apparent from F ig. 1, extends outwardly beyond the starting arm and is equipped at its outer end with an operating handle or knob 23. The starting arm is also-equipped with la shorter handle or knob 24 which, when the parts are in the position shown in Figs. l and 3, is covered by a guard 25 extending laterally from the release member over the knob or handle. This guard is designed to prevent the operator from grasping the knob 24 and swinging the starting arm and the release member together across the contact terminals to bring the releasemember into engagement with its release magnet 9, as has been the practice heretofore. Instead,

an operator starting a-motor with a start- .f

ing box constructed in accordance with my present inventlon, grasps the handle 23 of the release member andswmgs this member from the position shown in full lines in Fig. 1 to that shown in dotted lmes wherein they member isv in engagement with the core of the release magnet 9 by which it is held in this dotted line position so long as current passes through the windings of the magnet. The yoke 15 is provided with a finger 26 which is brought into engagement with the starting arm just before the re-y lease member comes in contact with the mag- -net so that upon linal swinging movementV of the release member the starting arm is moved by this linger from theblank contact 22 onto the first starting resistance Contact 7 as shown by the dotted line position of the starting arm in F ig. 1. i Since the circuit is closed by engagement of the starting armr with the rst resistance contact just before the release member engages with its magnet, it will be obvious that the magnetwill be energized to retain the release member in the position shown indotted lines in Fig.l 1.

The motor is now traveling at .its lowest speed and the operator can increase this speed to any desired amountby grasping the handle 24 and moving the starting arm across the resistance` contacts 7 until the desired speed of the motor has been attained.- The parts will `then remain in the position to which they have been set* and the motor will continue to run until the current is discontin-v ued, whereupon the magnet will release the ,j

member is held yby the magnet as soon as the starting arm isr moved onto the first resistance contactand that the starting arm may then be gradually'moved up to give'the desired motor speed without moving ,it to full speed position as has heretofore been necessary for the purpose of setting the release 'members Thespeed of the motor may therefore be gradually increased without at any time exceeding the desired speed, and should the current be cut olf the starting arm will Vbe immediately returned by the? releasemember to neutral posit-ion from any point at which it has been set. It is believed that the principle of my ,in-.Y vention fand the construction of onejpreferred embodiment; thereof will. beunderstood .from the foregoingwithout further, description, but it shouldbe obvious that the structural details can bevaried .within cone. siderable. limits Without departing from the essence of the invention as defined in thefollowing claims.v

I claimt' ,5

Y1. In' a starting box, the combination ofa pivoted starting arm provided with a handle, a release'magnet, a release arm pivoted concentrically with said starting armand disposedfbetween the `-latter/and said mag-` net, 'a handle on said releasearm, meansconnectedwith said release arm for movf ing said startingvarm Vinto low Speed circuit closing position during-the latter part of, the movement of said release arm toward said magnet, and a spring acting onsaid rel lease yarm tomoveV the latter, and thereby`4 said starting arm, into inoperative .positionl when saidrelease arm isreleasedby said magnet.

2. Ina startingbox, the combination of a starting arm provided With a handle, a release member provided Witha guard overlyingsaidhandlef-fwhen the parts are in in. operative position, a release magnet, means connected with said member for moving. said arm into circuit-closingfposition when said member is manually moved into coperative `relation with said magnet, and ,a spring actingfon `'said release member to 110 move said member, and therebysaid start# ing arm, into inoperative position when said member is released bythe magnet. K

3. In a starting box, the combination of a starting arm-provided with a handle, a re- 11b lease member'pivoted ,concentrically with said starting arm and 4provided with a guard overlying said handlefwhen said arm and member are in contiguous relation` with 'each other, a release magnets-a handle lby which said release member may be swunglinto yen- 2 gagement with said magnet, and a finger connected to said member inposition to en-pv gage said armrand move the same into cir-` cuit-closing position when said member is '125 engaged with the magnet.

` 4. In a starting box, the combination of a seriesy of starting resistance units, a pivoted starting arm provided VWith a handle, a release magnet, a release arm n"pivoted c0n- 130 gtrically with and lying alongside of said to engage said starting arm and move the starting arm between the latter and said latter into Contact with the first of said remagnet in the inoperative position of said sistance units during the final part of the 10 starting arm, a handle on said release arm, swinging movement of said release arm toa spring normally urging' said release arm ward said magnet.

sidewise against said starting arm, and

means carried by said release arm serving ROBERT A. ILG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ive cents each, by addressing the "commissioner at Patents,

Y' Washington, D. c. 

